White House aide Brian Deese saved Chrysler, rickrolled Twitter

When the self-described “mediocre golfer” David Wiggs of Franklin, TN took to Twitter to complain about a boring White House press conference, he caught the attention of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. They replied yesterday with a tweet apologizing, and offering Wiggs something more fun.

Deputy Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese sent the tweet while manning a shift on the White House live blog. Deese usually spends his day on activities more productive than advancing Internet memes. You know, like saving Chrysler from extinction.

May 31, 2009, New York Times: A month ago, when the administration was divided over whether to support Fiat’s bid to take over much of Chrysler, it was Mr. Deese who spoke out strongly against simply letting the company go into liquidation, according to several people who were present for the debate.

[snip]

Mr. Deese was not the only one favoring the Fiat deal, but his lengthy memorandum on how liquidation would increase Medicaid costs, unemployment insurance and municipal bankruptcies ended the debate. The administration supported the deal, and it seems likely to become a reality on Monday, if a federal judge handling the high-speed bankruptcy proceeding approves the sale of Chrysler’s best assets to the Italian carmaker.